Brother America
by OHBrie
Summary: Tony just wanted a big brother, Steve was willing to fill that role. [Sequel to For Daddy, But Mostly For Me]
1. Chapter 1

The world had changed and it had left him behind with it. The war had long since ended, and the young beautiful Peggy he had left behind was no longer quite so young, although she kept her beauty. She had also moved on, he was glad for her as he would never wish on her the fate of pining over him for all these years. However it still hurt to know she had a family, a husband. For her it may have been forty or so years but for him he had been going down for one moment but the next he was faced with familiar but aged faces.

Howard had changed too. He had left a bright young man who was brimming with energy and ideas; this man was not the man he once knew. He had lost his spark that had fuelled him, grown bitterer with age and no longer looked at the world with the bright eyes he once had. Peggy was equally not the woman that he knew. Almost selfishly, he found himself wondering if it would have been for the best if he hadn't been found until after they had been long gone. Left with only the memories of them rather than having to meet them again as different people.

There were few blessings that made him glad to be awakened from the ice. One of those was Howard's son (it was so odd to consider _Howard_ having a son of all people), Tony. Steve Rogers had always had a fondness for children and there was something about this scrawny boy with the big attitude that was utterly endearing.

He felt a pang of lost and a new found respect for Bucky considering how the man had put up with his scrawny self for all those years. He wondered if they had ever recovered his body, he hoped he had a proper burial.

It was hard being consumed with the ghosts of the past when he was confronted with the energetic boy who was filled with so much life. Tony was a wave of fresh air and he was amazed by the other's sheer intelligence. There was also the fact that this little boy was the person who found him, he found that was special to him.

There was something he did not like, he watched the boy around Howard and it did not sit right in the pit of his stomach. They treated one another as strangers and it was like they both knew more about Steve himself rather than each other. That was not how families were supposed to be, Steve remembered his mother fondly with the way her arms kept him safe and warm.

Looking at Tony it was like he did not even know what a hug was, it was pitiful watching Howard and Tony's attempts at a hug. For two geniuses it was saddening to see they did not even know how to hug. So he naturally decided to take things into his own hands, or rather arms.

He found himself hugging Tony often, it had started off as an afterthought as Tony looked so sad so he just hugged him and Tony had looked very close to passing out after it. After a while Tony slowly and tentatively began initiating some of the hugs himself.

Hugging was a comfort that he felt that both of them needed.

It was hard adapting to this new world with new technology, new everything. Brooklyn was no longer the same. He was not forced into the new world however; the world remained unaware of Captain America's return due to Peggy keeping things under wraps as he regained his feet. Steve Rogers was going to return before Captain America ever would, Peggy made sure of that.

The world may be ready for Captain America but maybe Captain America wasn't ready for the world.

He was introduced slowly and painstakingly by old friends and the eager Tony. So when he learnt that there was something that little Tony did not know how to do? He felt it was merely a chance to repay the favour.

"Why would I ever need to learn how to bake a cake? I can easily just buy a few dozen bakeries." Tony huffed in the way he did when he wanted to hide how really eager he was under nonchalance. He had learnt from his father to hide his emotions as emotions were weakness but Steve did not really believe in that so he was trying to break both the older and younger Stark out of it.

"Because making something yourself makes whatever you made special." Steve answered with his Captain America smile that he used when he was trying to show Tony that small simple from the heart gifts were better than the ridiculously expensive, large and just plain ridiculous gifts he came up with. Tony seemed to think throwing money at a problem rather than involving himself emotionally was the answer when it came down to him wanting to show guilt or affection to anyone. It was things like this which he no doubt learnt from his parents that made him wish that he never went down in that ice so he could have always been there for Tony and help him grow up as a loved and less emotionally distant child.

"Pfft. If that was the case father would have at least tried some of my inventions." Ouch, that hurt a little but surely Tony saw that they had meant so much that they weren't discarded but rather displayed? Howard may not any faith in the fact they would work (he needed several words with Howard over his treatment of his son) but he never just binned them.

"Oh well, I'll just invent a machine that makes perfect cakes." Tony shrugged, Steve rolled his eyes.

"That isn't an option." He scolded.

"Oh, come on. Baking is for poor people."

"So you're saying you cannot do it then."

"I'm Tony Stark, I found _you_ , didn't I? I can do anything. Even make a puny cake."

"Prove it. Bake one with me."

"Fine."

"Fine." Steve couldn't help grinning to himself; Tony was so predictable sometimes (despite generally being unpredictable in his inventions and ideas) and did not being told he was not able to do something. That was probably what made him a good inventor; he saw no limits and did not know when to give up.

...

"You're supposed to put the flour in the bowl rather than over yourself." Steve was answered by a glare that might have been more intimidating if Tony hadn't need a chair to stand on to see into the bowl and if Tony's dark tousled hair and tanned face wasn't bleached white by the sheer amount of flour he managed to explode everywhere.

"Screw you old man." Tony responded coughing slightly as he swallowed some stray flour.

"Language. Respect your elders you punk." Steve couldn't help smiling however even as he reprimanded the younger, Tony rather maturely decided to answer with drawing a streak of flour down Steve's cheek. Steve blinked in surprise before the first Great Flour War of Stark Kitchen commenced, it was a dirty and long battle but Captain America came up on top after Tony relented and surrendered after he practically looked like a living snow-man with how covered in flour he was.

"A super soldier picking a battle with a child, how very gallant and honourable of you Captain America." Tony applauded with a more sass than Steve thought someone his size could hold in his little body.

"Eh-hem." That sharp tone could only mean one person. "What have you done to my kitchen?"

"Shit." Steve murmured, Edwin Jarvis despite having became grey was a rather intimidating man when it came down to certain things. One being Tony Stark and another being his kitchen.

"Language!" Tony scolded with a smirk before looking at Jarvis sheepishly. "Steve started it, he said he was going to teach me how to bake but instead he just thought it would be funny to cover me in flour."

"Traitor." Steve hissed, Tony answered via sticking his tongue out. How mature.

"Very well then Sir, I shall accompany you in future cookery lessons to prevent further damage." Steve gave out a small sigh of relief thinking they had gotten away without getting their butts whooped by an angry butler.

"However." Steve sighed too soon. "Master Rogers is going to clean up my kitchen and young Sir, you're going to take a bath. If I see a speck of flour from either of you there will be hell to pay." Steve may have pouted a little, Jarvis made him feel like a child with his scolding and although it was somewhat welcome after everything got a little much with the whole waking up in the future and the memories of war, it still mostly sucked. Especially as Tony was clearly the favourite child and got let off easily.


	2. Chapter 2

Tony had grown so quickly and it was almost a pity. It was humbling to see, when he looked at himself in the mirror that he hadn't aged a day, even out of the ice.

He had nightmares of seeing Tony old, frail and confined to a hospital bed whilst he looked no older than twenty-five. He did not want to see all his loved ones grow old and die whilst he remained young. It was bad enough with Peggy and Howard but to actually watch Tony change from a chubby cheeked child full of life and inventive ideas to an old man full of sickness and memory lost. That was more painful than it just being the future.

So he clung to the moments of the now almost desperately hoping that the child features stayed longer but the adult that the boy would become still seeped itself into his face.

"You still owe Peggy a dance. I reckon she waited long enough." Tony was taller now, though not that much so, he would never be tall. A dark brow arched upwards and arms folded tightly across his chest, Tony looked more disappointed in him than anything.

"I still don't know much about dancing, I'm afraid."

"I did not know much about cooking either but you taught me, it's practically chemistry with a slightly less risk of explosion. So now I'm amazing."

"Explosions aren't supposed to occur when making cupcakes."

"The explosions are what make them taste better, that's not the point. The point is that I can help you with the dancing."

"You dance?"

"I am a Stark, we're practically American royalty. Therefore I am not an uncultured swine, I've had dance, piano and singing lessons since I was four. I am in fact incredibly well cultured." Tony scowled at Steve's incredulous look.

"I would not call your AD-BC cultured."

" _AC-DC_ and you shut your filthy ogre mouth. Do you want me to help you sweep Aunt Peggy off her feet with your sweet ass moves or what?"

...

"I'm surprised."

"Oh?"

"You're Captain America, you pick up every physical sport with ease yet you're still bad at dancing. At last there is hope for us mere mortals yet." Tony stated with a lazy grin as he kept one eye on their moving feet that stepped in time to the music.

"Bad, am I?" Steve muttered incredulously before spinning Tony into his chest. The younger meeped at being confronted with Steve's chest seeing as it was lethal seeing as it was made out of compacted brick-like muscle. Aunt Peggy wasn't quite as young as she once was she might have fractured a wrist on that bad boy. He actually felt somewhat winded.

"I'm lucky I'm wearing steel-toed-caps as you could have broken my toes seeing how much times you stood on them. I swear you left imprints into them though." Tony responded when he got some of his precious air back.

"I did not." Steve scoffed. The super solider did glance down however to check that he definitely did not, Tony counted that as a win in his books.

"You nearly tore my arms off several times with how much strength you put into your very unnecessary spins."

"You're just a bad sport considering how I'm lead and you're not." Tony's lips pursed up, he had wanted to be lead but being the stronger and taller one of the two Steve had wrangled the lead from him. Which was utterly unfair and Tony made a much better lead anyway.

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"I'm glad I found you." They creaked to a halt from their sweep around the room when Steve realised what exactly Tony said. "You're the best brother anyone could ask for."

Steve felt like he should perhaps cry a little at that, the good kind of tears as did Tony even realise what saying words like that would do to him? He had never meant to gain a little brother and had never once thought it would be _Howard Stark's son_. He was pretty glad Tony found him too.

"Ha. Ha. Forget I said anything." Steve realised that he had not responded quickly enough seeing how Tony was quickly backtracking himself to get out of whatever mess he thought he might be in.

"I love you too Tony." There was a small sniffle and Steve felt that he could ignore the tears' stain upon his shirt, from when the other buried his face into his chest whilst he hugged him tight enough that he had to wonder whether _Tony_ had the super strength.

...

"I know it had been a good few decades since it was said, but my memory is not failing me yet, I thought you said you did not know how to dance?" Peggy said with a quirked brow, there was no doubt where Tony had gathered many of his expressions from. In particular that one raised brow.

"Decades? You don't look a day over twenty ma'am. I didn't know how to dance. I had a little help though." They swept across the dance floor as if it belonged to them and Steve knew he was going to cherish this moment.

"You charmer." Peggy smiled blowing a single grey lock out of her face. Her hair was peppered with brunette now being more grey than otherwise, she wore it well and with pride however. Unlike Howard who was going grey kicking, screaming and using far too many hair products.

"Tony I presume?" Peggy was all-knowing when it came to such things. Steve glanced towards Tony who had dragged along his newest playmate, a young man called James Rhodes. Tony had finally managed to convince Howard that he could handle MIT and had sunk his claws into Rhodes the moment he took a liking. Steve had a feeling that this Rhodes would be one that stayed. He reminded him of another James he knew long ago, this Rhodes was bound to stick by Tony till the end of the line and he was glad. He fought away his own grief over Bucky.

"Who else could teach an old dog, new tricks?" He muttered snickering lightly at Tony's attempts to get the other boy to dance with him like how Peggy and Steve were dancing.

"Humour an old lady, and show me my two favourite boys dancing together?"

"You're not..." Peggy silenced him with a well placed finger.

"I'm not getting any younger, Steve." It was accepting and taken with the same strength that Peggy took everything. Steve felt the sad creep in however. "One for the picture books. Fill them up with good memories Steve to help you through the bad ones to come."

So he danced with Tony much to Tony's embarrassment as laughing he asked 'Rhodey' not to look, to turn his head like a good friend whilst he was spun around. Peggy had gained plenty of photographs for her picture books, one of which was a group photograph of them all. Including Rhodey. There was a space left respectively for someone who couldn't be there today however. Steve was thankful for that.

One day he would see Bucky again. Just not in this life time.

...

Elsewhere the Winter Solider opened his eyes.


End file.
